Here on American Soil!

It happened here in America:

If over our history books one pores,

He or she will find that Nazi

Sympathizers were on our shores.

 

Back in the 1930s and 40s,

While Naziism was on the rise

In Europe, there were Americans

Who eagerly bought into Hitler's lies.

 

Henry Ford was one who had

Ideas we would call extreme.

He often spoke of the "Jewish threat"

And sympathized with the Nazi regime.

 

Charles Lindbergh also expressed

Racist beliefs. He was a critic

Of entering into a war against Hitler

And held views that were anti-Semitic.

 

Charles Coughlin,° a Catholic priest,

Spoke out loudly against the Jews.

Using radio waves, he reached

Millions with his pro-fascist views.

 

Philip Johnson°° was linked to Coughlin.

Fascist ideas were right up his alley.

He wrote anti-Semitic pieces

And went to many a Nazi rally.

 

Even Walt Disney attended some

Pro-Nazi meetings before the war

And gave a tour of his studio to

A Nazi director. Hmmm. What for?

 

The Nazi propaganda machine

Spread its misinformation here,

And law enforcement agencies

Were reluctant to interfere.

 

One goal was to keep the U.S.

Out of the war, for Hitler knew

That if America entered the war,

He'd likely lose World War II.

 

The other goal: to cause the people

To bathe in their anger, so to speak,

To turn the people against one another

In order to make the country look weak.

 

Now that we have the Internet,

Propaganda can spread even faster.

And when it comes to creating chaos,

We know that Vladimir Putin's a master.

 

What should we do? Become informed,

Keep our eyes open, and stay alert.

Letting propaganda destroy us

Is a disaster we MUST avert.

-by Bob B (6-8-24)

 

°He was known as "the radio priest" and was a mass media demagogue.

°°An architect and active supporter of Hitler's Third Reich and even as of 1964 said Hitler was "better than Roosevelt."